John C. Russell's play received good enough reviews at NYC's WPA Theatre to transfer to an--albeit brief--run at the larger Century Theatre. From this current production we can only assume that then-director Michael Mayer must have had the Midas touch, for nothing short of magic could have turned this slight, obvious play into Off-Broadway gold. At 2nd Stage director Jason Wood actually seems to have managed to spin floss into lead.
Similarly it's with a lead pipe that Russell hits us over the head from line one. Four students at Joe C. McCarthy High School--get it?--meet at the police station, where they've been dragged in for various offenses, and become instant friends. The template here is Rebel Without a Cause--three characters, in fact, have similar names and the basic characteristics of the movie's protagonists: the conflicted Judy (Stacy Reed), the adoring Neechee (Matthew Heron), and the rebellious Jim (Lucas Fleischer)--but the focus is on one slight theme of the film: Neechee's subverted paternal--here overtly sexual?obsession for the virile Jim. To parallel this lopsided school-crush relationship, Russell introduces Kimberly (Casey Schacter), who's just as in love with the pristine Judy as Neechee is with Jim. Kimberly and Neechee plot and pray for the requited love of their adoreds, while Jim and Judy cowardly opt for conventional acceptance by the ruling tribe at school. Russell eventually boils down the choices for his characters: gay love or "slavery" to a brutal system. Not a tough decision, though they blow it anyway--and not much of a conflict, either.
It seems that if the actors had performed in a heightened style--a parody of the high emotions constantly expressed--much of the dialogue would at least have been humorous. Here it's played straight and natural--and dull. Beyond this major artistic misstep, there are technical choices and constraints that further hamper the production. Videotaped music-video segments--presumably scripted--are projected occasionally during the play. They don't propel the plot, nor are they funny. Moreover, Russell's staggering 21 scenes in less than 90 minutes require endless set changes that, while fast, aren't fast enough. On a wider stage than the intimate 2nd Stage, one assumes, there would be seamless cross-fading from one locale to the next, but here we must wait every five minutes for the actors to rearrange the space.
Of course, any technical problems might have been overcome by an inspired production. The cast members are game, but they've clearly been coached to play things very Movie of the Week--and not the fun kind of over-the-top, Tori Spelling Movie of the Week that might have given this piece some bite.
As it is, this is definitely a Rebel with a cause--but the cause chokes the characters and makes for a thoroughly un-rebellious evening.